


Lawless

by NoicePip



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Graphic Sex, Kinda slow burn though, M/M, Porn With Plot, Smut, Switch Keith, THERE IS PLOT, This is my first time writing a fic, background shallura - Freeform, believe me, but it's good, criminals, criminals au, klance, lots actually, shallura - Freeform, smut is my specialty, sorry if it's not as good as you were hoping, switch Lance, they just don't care really, they just want to fuck eachother, they switch, trust me - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-05
Updated: 2017-05-02
Packaged: 2018-09-28 10:09:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10090772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoicePip/pseuds/NoicePip
Summary: Keith has a normal life. He's majoring in astrophysics, has a nice job at the hardware store down the street, and lots of money in his savings.So you can understand him being a little pissed when a not-so-subtle Cuban criminal starts appearing everywhere in his life in the most unexpected ways. He's got to get away before his life completely falls apart.But it's not as easy as he'd thought when the thrill of a whole new life out there catches his eye. A life that strays a little far from the law.





	1. Three Inconvenient Encounters

A warm night breeze blew softly through Keith's hair. He pulled a band off his wrist and tied his hair back absentmindedly, looking down at the streets below. The city was bustling and busy, even at 11:00 at night. He sucked in a deep breath, tilting his head back as he let out the breath, staring at the black night sky. 

It was another one of those nights. He just needed to get away. The top of a building was pretty good for that sort of thing. 

His attention was snatched from the sky, and pulled to the streets far below. A car had screeched to a halt, causing multiple other cars to swerve and turn out of the way to avoid a crash. There, in the middle of the road was a little girl, looking absolutely horrified. Keith jumped up and jogged to the side of the building, not hesitating in the slightest to leap off the side and land on the fire escape a few feet down. He climbed down the ladders.  
He landed softly on the ground and ran out of the alley to where the cars had stopped.

He was relieved to see someone had caught up to the girl in time to help her, and give her a stern talking to.

Keith turned and kicked a stone across the ground, shoving his hands into the pockets of his pants. He walked the city streets, staring at the ground for the most part of his walk. He brushed off the lingering women dotting the side walk, and avoided any large alleys. He didn't feel like chancing his luck tonight. It was too peaceful.

The peace didn't last.  
Keith was shoved to the side by someone running past, smacking him into the wall of a building and twisting his ankle. He gave a shout at the sudden pain and the person who'd shoved him, looking up to see a man. Not much taller than Keith, with casual dress. His skin was a nice tan, Keith noted, and a face with sharp features.

"Oh, God, I'm so sorry! Dude are you alright? Sorry, I was in a hurry." He began apologizing, waving his hands around in front of him and looking panicked. Rattled, Keith noticed, which pricked his curiosity slightly. But not enough to stifle his irritation.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Maybe you should watch where you're going next time." Keith said with an edge to his voice. He rolled his ankle, testing it on the ground to see if it was badly hurt or not. The latter, because he could still put weight on it. He eyed the lanky boy up and down, wondering what someone like him was doing out this late at night. He didn't look much older than Keith(who was 20 at the moment, almost 21) and there weren't any bars nearby, so it was a little weird.

The guy furrowed his eyebrows a little. "Well, I did say sorry. You were the one who was looking at ground while you were walking, so you can't blame me for the whole thing!" He countered.

Keith dragged a hand down his face, sighing. "Never mind. I'm fine. You're fine. I've got to go now, bye." He said, settling the matter as quickly as possible. He turned heel and began walking again, unknowingly letting his eyes drift to the ground again as he walked. Tch, guy was running anyways. Who doesn't look where they run? Honestly.

_________

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

Keith groaned where he lay, listening with increased irritation at the loud buzzing of his alarm clock. He didn't move for a few seconds, hoping that maybe if he lay for a bit the battery might die and silence the damned thing. It didn't happen.

With a lot of effort, the boy lifted his sleep heavy arm and searched the bedside table with his hand. He didn't open his eyes immediately, until he noticed that he couldn't find the alarm anywhere on the table. With a grunt, he pushed himself up, rubbing his tired eyes and peering around the room for the source of the sound. Of course, as usual, it was on his desk, on the other side of the room. 

Why he thought that was such a good idea again, he couldn't remember. 

His attention was snatched from the alarm clock when his phone started buzzing on the night stand, a stream of messages popping up on the screen. Keith grabbed it and looked at who was bothering him at- he peered to read the screen in the dark room- 9 am.

-Messages-

Pidgey: Wake up sleepy head! First day of university!

Pidgey: You better meet me for breakfast at that coffee shop!

Pidgey: Don't forget to bring the stuff!

-end messages-

Keith sighed, but couldn't help smile at his friend's excitement. He couldn't blame her, and to be honest, he was a little excited too. 

He'd just moved out of his home a couple of weeks ago, to join in big city life and go to the famed Altea University. It has the biggest campus in the country and tops even Harvard in academics, and is the most difficult University to get into on the planet. In fact, the only reason he's in it is because of his friend, Shiro... Friend, and half brother, Shiro. Who just happen to be dating the founder of the university. Allura, Keith recalled Shiro talking about the woman. 

Pidge, on the other hand, got into it all on her own. Sometimes Keith found himself jealous of the girl, being only 16 and already in university, but then he remember he loved her non the less. She was his first real friend, after all.

Keith was snapped out of his thoughts by the buzzing of his alarm once more. He sighed, throwing his legs over the edge of the bed and pushing himself up, stretching his arms above his head. He moved over to the alarm and turned it off, silence enveloping the small bedroom. Time to face the day.

 

Pidge was already at the café when Keith arrived, sitting by a window. She looked jittery and excited, and when she spotted Keith, quickly waved him over to sit across from her. He sat down, setting his bag to the side.

"Did you bring the stuff?" Pidge suddenly questioned, leaning over and raising an eyebrow at him. Keith chuckled.

"Yeah, I did. And why do you call it 'stuff'? It's just old batteries. What are you even using them for?" He asked, handing over some Tupperware filled with all the batteries he could scavenge.

Pidge narrowed her eyes, turning her head to look around the coffee shop before leaning over the table again, raising a hand to shield her mouth as she whispered.  
"I'm engineering something." She said, sitting back again with a wide smile.  
"It's gonna be the future, Keith, I'm telling you now. It's a prosthetic limb, and I'm gonna make it as my final this year. I'm gonna call it... The Death Arm!" She said, raising her arm and flexing what little muscle she had.

Keith furrowed his eyebrows. "We haven't even gotten to the first class yet, and you're already thinking about finals?"

"Of course!" Pidge told him, "What else am I supposed to do in my spare time? Certainly not what you do, mister, which is nothing."

Keith rubbed the back of his head, offering a small smile. "Yeah, I guess so."

Pidge continued as her and Keith's food was set on the table by a waiter.  
"We really need to get you a hobby, dude. Honestly. What do you even do in your spare time?" She questioned, narrowing her eyes at him.

Keith shrugged. "You know, stuff. Not much." He said. "But... What is this death arm gonna be able to do, is the real question here." He said, trying to change the subject. It seemed to work a little, as Pidge's eyes lit up and she started rambling on about her designs and capabilities of the arm, but Keith slowly zoned out, keeping his eyes trained on the streets outside the window.

~ ~

"Well, see ya later. We still up for tonight?" Pidge asked after they'd finished with breakfast. Keith shrugged. "Sure. I don't have much else to do." He said.

They went their separate ways, Keith heading to the University while Pidge headed back to her apartment. She didn't have class for at least a couple hours.

The class Keith was going to was huge.

An auditorium the size of baseball field, it had to be, was Keith's first thought as he entered the room. Theatre style, with rows of seats curving around a centre platform on the far end of the room. There was just one desk, a sort of combined desk style that stretched in a curve in front of the seats. There were only a few students already there, considering Keith was a little early. He walked down the side steps, wondering where to sit. He decided on a row a little farther back, around the middle. The 7th row from the front.

He unzipped his bag and pulled out a notebook and a mechanical pencil. The pencils of the future, he remembered Pidge going on a rant about how normal wooden pencils were the reason the earth was going to shit.

Keith sat in the chair, elbows on the desk and boredly tapping his pencil on the paper. He started to doodle a little, unaware that the class was slowly filling up with students of all shapes and sizes. His eyes drifted up from his doodle of a cat to suddenly realize, unexpectedly, why the auditorium was so big. It was nearly full with students, and Keith started to feel a little nervous. What if someone sat beside him? He wasn't exactly the greatest with meeting new people. And he really didn't want to sit beside someone he wouldn't get along with.  
He looked up at the doors in the back, willing no more people to enter. A couple of students did, however, but none of them sat beside him. And then there were no more students.

Keith breathed a sigh of relief as everyone settled down, pulling out notebooks and pens and pencils. The professor had also entered the room without Keith noticing, and was now clearing his throat to get the attention of the class. Keith relaxed in his seat, looking forward.

"Good morning students. I am Professor Zarg. I am going to be your astronomy professor for this semester, and I hope-"  
Professor Zarg was abruptly cut off when one of the back doors slammed open, a student breathing heavily as if he'd just run a marathon to get here standing in the doorway. He looked up, to his own surprise, to find every eye in the room looking back at him.  
Keith's eyes widened. No.

The Cuban boy looked absolutely embarrassed, trying to give a small apologetic smile as the door quietly shut behind him. He cleared his throat, adjusting his backpack on his shoulder as he looked around his room. His eyes locked with Keith's, and Keith saw the same baffled expression mirroring in his face.

"Ahem."  
Everyone's attention was turned back to Professor Zarg, who look beyond annoyed at being interrupted so suddenly on the first day. He went on with his welcoming speech, and Keith had to tear his gaze away from the familiar face in the back of the class. He tried focusing on the Professor.

Suddenly there was a thump beside him, and Keith looked up in bewilderment at the used to be empty seat beside him, which now had an occupant. 

"Hey." He began, giving a small, again apologetic, smile towards Keith, who was not impressed.

"You're... That guy from last night, aren't you?" The boy asked.

Keith turned his gaze away, shrugging. "I might be. Why are you here?" He questioned, not lifting his gaze form the front of the room.

He heard the boy shift in his seat beside him, probably pulling out some paper from his bag. "I'm a student here. And I'd guess the same for you. I'm Lance, by the way." He said, reaching out a hand to shake. Keith eyed the hand, then looked up to see Lance smiling wide at him.  
Keith didn't shake his hand. "Keith." He said simply in reply, beginning to jot down some notes that the Professor started writing on the board.

Lance stayed silent after that. He couldn't tell if the boy was upset or just didn't care. And Keith didn't really care.

The class was 2 hours long, and it sure felt like it. Every now and then Lance would nudge him to ask something, or to borrow an eraser, or say something completely off topic. 

By the time class ended, Keith wanted nothing more than to go home and sleep. He quickly gathered his stuff, hoping to leave before the boy beside him spoke up again. Hurriedly, Keith made his way up and out of the classroom, walking down the hall to his next class: Physics. To his dismay, someone called out his name behind him, walking up beside him.

"Hey... I'm sorry about last night," Lance began, easily keeping up with Keith's fast pace. 

"It's fine." Keith responded.

"Hey, what's your next class?" Lance asked.

"Physics." Keith answered simply.

"Physics? Now way!" Lance smiled wide. "Me too."

Keith's eyes widened slightly. "Seriously?" This loud, obnoxious boy was in two of the same classes as him?

"Wanna sit together again? I don't really know anyone here. I just recently moved with a friend, and he doesn't have any of the same classes as me." He explained.

Keith didn't answer. He just kept walking. This was going to be a long day.

When the second class was over, it was past lunch. Keith's stomach growled as he left the class, heading for the cafeteria on the south side of the campus. He didn't know how, but he managed to avoid Lance in the chaos that was the end of class, and he was hoping to keep it that way. He had, like, two friends, so he didn't need any more right now.

The rest of the day felt like it went by faster than the morning had, which was a weight off Keith's back. By the time he arrived back at his apartment, it was almost time to meet up with Pidge. A sort of celebratory dinner, she'd said, to welcome Keith to the big city. But she did say that he was paying for it.

Keith plopped down on the old couch in the makeshift living room, letting out a breath and relaxing a little. He cringed.  
He'd have to find a different seat in Physics. And astronomy.

Keith sat up and grabbed the remote from the coffee table, switching on the small tv he'd bought when he moved here. The news was the first to come up, and he froze when the words came through the speakers.

"-just been recently robbed, and the police are now locked in a car chase across the city. The bank is still trying to figure out how much was stolen, but it is estimated to be around two-hundred and forty thousand dollars. The thief in question was not identified immediately at the scene of the crime, as they were wearing a mask and large clothing that hid most of their skin. The getaway vehicle is a large motorcycle driven by the partner in crime."

Keith was up from the couch a moment later, turning up the sound so he could listen while he got ready in his own room. 

"Hold on, we just got a news update." The lady stayed silent for a moment.  
"The robbers have just entered the south side of town. They're driving through the university grounds-"

Keith didn't listen any further. He turned off the tv and headed out the door, grabbing his wallet on the way.  
He walked down the darkening street, taking in a deep breath of spring city air.  
He checked the time. If he didn't hurry, he realized, he's be late.

Quickly, Keith turned sharply down an alley, trying to find a short cut to the restaurant. It shouldn't have been far, he thought, as he'd looked up the location on his phone earlier that day. Finally he reached a different alley and started to walk out of it when a motorcycle came screeching into the alley. It had taken a sharp turn off the road ahead but had to stop abruptly, skidding over the ground, to avoid hitting Keith.  
The driver wore a full face mask, staring at Keith. A half-masked face poked up from behind the driver, speaking loudly and sharply.

"Why are we stopping? Drive!" He said, eyes landing on Keith. The passenger was also wearing a mask, the hood of a large jacket pulled up to cover his head. A white and black mask covering the top of his face and curved down around the sides. Kind of fancy for a robber, Keith thought.

The passenger eyed Keith for a second, and then a sly smile curled up on his lips. He jumped off the motorbike, putting his gloved hands on his hips. 

"What're you doing out here? Don't you know alleys are dangerous?" He questioned, strolling closer. For an odd reason, the voice sounded a little familiar. It was deeper than he thought it should have been, lower and huskier. It bother him, but Keith stood his ground. He shrugged. 

"Saw the news. You're the robbers, aren't you? You don't look that tough."

"Don't be so confident with a pair of scissors. You might get cut." The thief said, suddenly shifting his stance and bolting forward. He threw a punch into Keith's gut, sending him sprawling backwards on the ground, coughing in pain and unexpected surprise. He quickly scrambled to his feet, narrowly dodging another blow to his face and pacing backwards.

"Surprised? That's usually the case." The man spoke up again. Keith felt a smirk on his mouth.

"Not really. It's a bit sloppy." He said, suddenly rushing forward in anger. He threw sharp punches at his target, the thief narrowly dodged them, his grin suddenly turning to a frown at the unexpected counter attack. Good.

Keith took his chance to advance on his target. He swung his leg up, landing a direct kick in the man's side, sending him directly into a wall. He let out a grunt at the impact, looking a little pissed now. He flung his arm up, sending unexpected knives flying at Keith.  
Keith winced as he dodged them, one slicing a cut through his cheek. He planted a foot on the ground to steady himself and stared, wide eyed. Who on earth just carries knives in their sleeves? In his bafflement, he didn't process the situation fast enough before the thief was on him again, shoving him back against the opposite building. Keith was about to knee him in the groin when he felt the cool barrel of a gun pressed under his chin, forcing his head to look up into the mask of his attacker. He froze.

The thief's face was close, a confident smile on his face at Keith's predicament. Without warning his hand gripped the boy's throat roughly. Keith could feel the man's surprisingly minty breath billowing against his mouth and shut his eyes, swearing inwardly as many times as mentally possible. He couldn't help a small growl escaping his mouth in anger.

"Heh," amusement dripped from the man's voice like honey. "You thought you were better than me? Think again sweetheart. Maybe next time don't meddle in things you don't understand, alright? Look at you, you're hurt now." He pouted at Keith, then a wicked grin crept on his face as he leaned close. Keith's eyes widened as he felt a tongue, dangerously close to his mouth, licking off the blood that came from the cut in his cheek. Keith sucked in a sharp breath, holding it and praying for the first time.

And then he was gone. Keith leaned back on the wall, watching with wide eyes as the thief strolled back to his partner, who'd been watching the whole time. He hopped onto the back of the bike again and waved a hand at Keith, still smiling. "Stay cool, Red." and with that, they sped away, leaving Keith alone. The sun was beginning to set, and Keith felt his body grow heavy. Well, so much for showing them up. 

It didn't take long for Keith to wobble an shaky legs back to his apartment. He opened the door and immediately went to his bedroom, flopping down on the mattress and letting out a long huff. He felt his eyes grow heavy, and he almost fell asleep, until his phone started buzzing from his nightstand again. Keith grabbed it, looking at it with tired eyes.

He was immediately wide awake again. Keith shot up from the bed, eyes wide. "Shit! Pidge!" 

Keith grabbed his phone and bolting out the door again.


	2. An Unfortunate Turn of Events

"I still haven't forgiven you, you know."

Pidge piped up from across the table. She sipped at a chocolate milkshake (which Keith had bought), and was still looking quite pissed.

Keith groaned. "Look, I said I was sorry like 5 times already, and I bought you a milkshake AND breakfast." He pointed out.

Pidge sent him daggers across the table, squeezing her hand around the milkshake tightly. "You totally ditched me! I was alone in a restaurant for 2 hours!" She accused.  
Keith felt a stab of guilt. He knew it was a dick move. He was just... A little distracted.

"What even happened to your face?" Pidge suddenly questioned, noticing how Keith's fingers lingered on his bandaged cheek. Keith felt heat rise up to his cheeks, recalling the earlier night.

"Oh my god!" Pidge's eyes widened as she leaned forward, lowering her voice quickly, "Did you... Do the do now?"

Keith spluttered and nearly choked on his own spit, staring at the girl in bafflement. "What? No! What?"

"You did."

"NO!" Keith snapped at her, glaring. "I swear I didn't. Get your mind out of the gutter!"

Pidge snickered, leaning back and taking a long sip of the milkshake. She let out an 'ah', before eyeing him warily again. "So... What did happen to your face then?"

Keith shrugged. "Nothing, I just cut it accidently. It's not even that bad."

Pidge looked like she wasn't buying it. And Keith couldn't blame her, exactly. He still hadn't even come up with a proper enough explanation as to why he hadn't been at the restaurant last night.

"Fine." She huffed out, pushing the milkshake to the side and grabbing her bag. "I gotta head to class now, anyways. I'm gonna meet up with a friend later." She smiled. "I met him in my engineering class. His name's Hunk. I told him about my project and he got so stoked about it, so we're gonna team up as a sort of group final project."

"Cool." Keith said, grabbing his own bag and leaving a fiver on the table.

"Mhm." She agreed, heading out the door. "You could totally come over. He's got another friend coming, too. Apparently he's pretty cool. I can't remember his name though... Hance I think?"

Keith blinked at her. "Lance?"

"Oh yeah! Lance. That's his name."

Keith shook his head, crossing his arms. "Nuh uh, no thank you."

Pidge furrowed her eyebrows. "You've met him? What's he like?"

"Annoying." Keith answered without hesitation.

Pidge chuckled. "I take it he didn't make a great first impression? What, does he like pineapple on pizza or something?"

Keith glared at her "Pineapple on pizza is an abomination. But no, it's not that."

Pidge shrugged, punching Keith lightly on the shoulder. "In any case, he can't be that bad. And you still owe me for the slip up yesterday. I am forcing you to go. Come on, it'll be fun."  
Keith groaned, dragging his hands down his face. He stayed silent for moment before answering. "Fine. Fine. I only have one class today... Lucky, he's not in it. When is it?"

Pidge checked her phone. "5:00. So after I'm done in class. I'll send you the address."

Keith nodded, stopping at the bus stop and waving Pidge goodbye. He sighed as he sat down on a seat on the bus, staring out the window as it drove.

 

___

The day went by fast, despite Keith doing absolutely nothing. By the time 5:00 rolled around, he was already at the specified address, an apartment building a little ways away from his own. He checked his phone, standing in front of the door. It was kind of embarrassing how on time he was.

With slight hesitation, and a little bit of hope that Pidge was already there, Keith knocked on the door. There was a clattering of pans not even a second later, and yelling came from inside. Keith took a step back, wondering if maybe he should just bolt now before they could answer. Ding dong ditch, if you will. Too late, though.

"-clean it up, Lance!" A large, dark skinned man with bright eyes answered the door in the midst of yelling. He turned to look at Keith and smiled wide. "You must be Keith!" He greeted with open arms, smiling at the shorter boy. Keith felt a little more discouraged now than he had before, waving a small hand at him.

"Uh... Yeah. Is- is Pidge here?" He asked, taking a peak inside the apartment. The larger man noticed and chuckled, moving out of the way to let Keith through. "Yeah, she's in the sitting room. I'm Hunk, by the way." He said, extending a hand. Keith hesitantly shook it, only to be startled by a loud voice coming from the side.

"Oh so you'll shake HIS hand, but not someone you've already met?" Lance threw an arm around Keith's shoulders, feigning hurt as he spoke. "Keith, you wound me!"

Keith shrugged off the arm, stepping back a little and eyeing Lance. "Well, at least he doesn't run into and fight with someone the moment he meets them." He pointed out.

Lance grinned, and Keith couldn't help but notice the taller's boy's eyes wandering to the bandaid on his cheek. A flash of recognition, or satisfaction, or both, crossed his eyes before he shrugged and walked over to the sitting room. "What can I say, I like to keep things fresh when I meet people."

Keith narrowed his eyes as the boy disappeared around the corner. Hunk sighed beside him, walking down and turning into a different room. "Lance, this isn't clean!" He shouted from the opposite room.

Keith wandered in further, turning into the sitting area. Pidge was sat on the floor, back facing him, and working at a small metal box with wires poking out all over the place. Lance was nowhere to be seen, thank god, so Keith sat down on the couch on the opposite wall. Pidge didn't look up from the box.

"Hey, I see you actually came and didn't ditch this time." The girl said with a sarcastic tone. Keith groaned.  
"You're never in a let this go, are you?"

"Let what go?"

Keith nearly jumped out of his skin, startled at Lance's sudden appearance so close to him. He barked out a laugh at Keith's scare, only managing to laugh more when Keith glared at him.  
"Don't sneak up on me like that!" He seethed, crossing his arms and looking away. Lance tried to control his laugh, but only managed to dumb it down into small giggles.

"S-sorry dude, I didn't know you'd scare so easily. Where's Hunk? I need his help taking down a couple stuff from my old room." He looked between the two and around the room, and just as Pidge was about to answer, they heard Hunk yell from the kitchen.

"I can't Lance, I'm too busy cleaning up your mess!"

Lance's eyes rolled. Pidge looked between Lance and Keith, before a wicked smile appeared on her face. Keith's eyes widened a bit. "No-"

"Lance, I'm sure Keith could help you!" Pidge offered, smiling sweetly. "He's very strong, works out a lot."

Lance's eyebrows shot up at the statement, and he gave Keith a sly smirk. "Are you sure?" His eyes roamed up and down Keith's body, and he felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise from the sudden attention.

"U-uh, well, I mean sometimes-"

"Cool! Come on." Lance interrupted, waving him down the hall. Keith's eyebrows set in a line, glaring at the back of Lance's head. He reluctantly followed the boy, entering a small room at the end of the hall. Boxes were stacked to the side, and a large, heavy looking shelf was attached to the side wall. Keith eyed it warily, scanning the top of it. It had a few books still lying on it.

"Alright, so we gotta get this shelf down, but it's super heavy. I've got it loose, so would you mind standing on the other side and lifting it? I'll lift with. Ready?"

Keith wandered to the other side of the shelf. It was about eye level, and he raised his hands to grab the edges. "Yeah."

"Okay, and, lift!" Lance said without warning. Keith squeaked indignantly and lifted it quickly, but his grip slipped and the corner came crashing down on his foot.

"FUCK!" He shouted, a stream of curses pouring from his mouth. Lance's eyes widened and he rushed over, holding up his hands as if he wanted to comfort Keith, but wasn't sure if touching him would help or get him punched.

"SON OF A BITCH, FUCK ME!" Keith held his foot tightly, tears forming at the corners of his eyes. Lance's eyebrows shot up again, and his mouth twitched up into an unfairly evil smile.

Keith stared at him, feeling the angry words bubbling up to shout, but he was cut short at the look Lance was giving him. It dawned on him.

"Lance, no, that's not what I meant." Keith spoke quickly, freezing in place when Lance leaned closer to his face, sky blue eyes eating Keith alive.  
Keith felt heat rising up to his cheeks, stuttering out incomprehensible words. Finally, Lance leaned his head to the side, and Keith could feel hot breath against his ear. His whole body stiffened.

"Your fly's been down since you got here."

And Lance was gone. Keith stood, holding his foot, in utter embarrassment while Lance dragged the shelf to the side, going ahead to pick up the fallen books. Keith felt his stare turn into a glare. He punched Lance harshly in the shoulder and walked out of the room. Lance only laughed where he crouched, but as Keith left, he noticed out of the corner of his eye Lance picking up his suddenly ringing phone.

"What happened to you? Cat got your tongue?" Pidge's voice made Keith want to punch a wall when he re-entered the living room. "No," he snapped, glaring at her. Pidge only snickered.

"Okay, salty."

Keith plopped down on the couch and let out a heavy breath. He shifted uncomfortably, the memory of Lance's hot breath against his ear still fresh in his mind. And that look... Those blue eyes...

Keith sucked in a long breath, staring intently at the tv. No, he had to stop thinking about that. It was a joke. A prank. It was just Lance, and maybe that's just how Lance was. He'd only met the guy a day ago.

Hunk finally emerged from the kitchen, letting out a huff and smiling at Keith and Pidge. He opened his mouth, but not a moment later, Lance burst into the living room, looking on edge and panicked. His eyes darted from Hunk, to Pidge, to Keith, then quickly back to Hunk as he took a deep breath and let it out.  
"I gotta go." He skirted around Hunk, going straight for the door. Keith felt his brows furrow at the sudden rush. He'd been fine a moment ago, what had happened?  
_Who called him?_

Keith felt his curiosity prick. Hunk was busy chasing after Lance down the hallway, questioning him.  
He came back a moment after the door slammed shut.

"Ugh, he does this every time!" Hunk complained, slouching back on the couch. Keith moved over a smidge, giving Hunk a questioning look. The same expression was mirrored on Pidge's face.

Hunk sighed. "He's always up and running off at the most random times. He did it on my birthday last year. And in the middle of night, more than once. He never tells me anything." Keith noticed a bit of sadness entering the man's eyes as he looked down. "And now he's moving out, so who knows where he'll be all the time."

Keith's mind flashed back to yesterday. It couldn't be, could it? Keith shook his head, clearing the thoughts immediately. The guy he'd met in the alley was nothing like Lance. Lance laughed loud and was annoying and a prankster. The guy he'd met was a downright cocky bastard with no regards to personal space.

But then, only moments earlier with Lance...

Keith blinked rapidly, glaring to the side. What the fuck? He didn't need these kinds of problems in his mind. Really, who cared?

"I think I'm gonna go." The words were out of Keith's mouth before he realized what he was planning to do. He looked between Hunk and Pidge, who were both sporting the 'what?' Look very well. Keith stood and patted Pidge on the shoulder, heading for the doorway. Pidge glared at him, scrambling to her feet.  
"What? So now you're gonna leave just because your fuck-buddy did? Well, jokes on you, you're buying me milkshakes for the next month!"

Keith hurried out of the apartment, closing the door quickly and pacing to the stairs. The elevator took too long, and right now, he was really itching to go somewhere.

_Where?_

The thought popping into his mind made Keith slow his pace, just a little, when he emerged from the building onto the warm city street. _Where?_ The question repeated.

He didn't know where. So he just began to walk. He didn't get far, when the sound of a motorcycle alerted him. It was weird, but somehow, the sound was... Familiar. In a very bad way. Of course, lots of people owned motorcycles, that wasn't new. But still.  
Keith felt cautious as he turned down the alley. It was a large alley that led into a hidden parking lot for the apartment building next to him.

Suddenly, there were other sounds. Sounds accompanying the motorcycle. Voices spoke in hushed, irritable tones. Keith couldn't make out the words over the sound of the bike. So he crept closer.

"...t just leave it there. It's the perfect opportunity, and Rolo is already coming. With this, we could strike it rich, Blue!"

Keith could hear them now. A women, and...

"No."

A man.

"Not tonight, Nyma. I've got too much on my plate, I told you guys I was taking a brake for a couple weeks." The voice was even quieter than the girl's and Keith had to strain his ears to hear.

"Ugh, taking a brake? More like wimping out. Pussy."

"Shut up! I'm the one who makes all your plans work, I hope you realize that. Without me, you guys are nothing. You may have started this, but I'm the one who kept it going." The guy sounded furious now. His voice was starting to sound recognizable.

"Oh my god!" The girl gave an obnoxious snort. "Please, give me a brake. All you do is sit on your ass and complain about how we do things. You don't help at all!"

Keith heard the man begin to retaliate, but everything drowned out suddenly when he felt a cold, familiar sensation on the back of his head. Metal pressed into his skull, and a hand shoved him forwards into the open. Before he could react, a strong arm wrapped around his throat and held him in a head lock, pressing the barrel of a gun to his temple roughly.

"You guys can't stop fighting for one minute to realize you're being spied on?" A scratchy voice shouted beside Keith's ear. He struggled against the grip, wincing when the barrel pressed harder into his temple. The man began walking forward, and Keith stumbled along the ground trying to keep up. The fighting voices were silenced now, and when Keith looked up, his eyes widened.

The motorcycle had been turned off at this point. Beside it stood a horribly familiar body and face. Keith's mouth dropped, but no words came out.

Lance stared at him, eyes wide and panicked. The girl, Nyma, was looking unimpressed and slightly resentful.

"Uh... Hi." Keith said lamely. Lance swallowed.

"Uh, Rolo, I really think... You should just lower the gun. Ke- the guy's not doing any harm."

The man, Rolo, jostled Keith a little, and Keith felt a growl escape his lips. He really wanted to punch him right now. "Hah, no way. He's not going anywhere. He was spying on us, Blue. Why don't we rough him up a bit, you know? Teach him a bit of a lesson."

Lance's stare suddenly hardened. "No, Rolo. Just let him go, okay? And go home. We're not doing anything tonight."

"What?" Rolo snapped, "what do you mean we're not doing anything tonight? There is some big cash in this. What did you do to him, Nyma?"

Nyma glared, uncrossing her arms. "I didn't do anything! He's the one being a little bitch about it. He doesn't wanna do it."

Rolo turned where he stood, jostling Keith more. He gripped onto Rolo's arm, trying to lessen the tight hold he had on him.

"What do you mean you ain't wanna do it? Bullshit!"

Lance looked slightly pained for a second, his eyes darting to Keith. Without realizing it, Lance had reached out a hand, in a weak attempt to try and save him, only to pull back his hand immediately, looking away.

"I ain't gonna do it, and you can't make me."

Rolo eyed Lance for a long moment, before gazing down at the boy wrapped in his arm. A slow smile spread over his lips. "You won't do it... At all?" He asked slowly, turning his head back to Lance. His grip around Keith's throat tightened, and Keith gasped for air, clawing at his arm.

Lance's eyes widened. "Stop!"

Rolo chuckled, dropping Keith to the ground. He landed on his hands and knees, coughing and rubbing at his throat to ease the pain and tension. He was starting to feel marginally better, when an unexpected foot collided with his stomach, sending him sprawling on the concrete. He clutched at his stomach, letting out a pained groan. "Fuck... Lance-" he breathed, reaching out a hand for help from the Cuban boy.  
But Lance wasn't paying attention to him, because his eyes were completely centred on Rolo. He approached the man, anger boiling in his eyes and swung a large right hook at him, not missing a beat when Rolo caught his fist. It was a distraction, because immediately afterwards Lance swung his knee up and collided it with Rolo's groin. Rolo wheezed and tumbled backwards, gasping in pain and slurring out random swears.

Keith pushed himself up, attempting to escape the scene. He stumbled to his feet and looked back at Lance, who was fuming in the spot. His footsteps stopped short as reality began to sink in. Lance was a criminal. He was in a gang.

Lance's expression changed from boiling rage to concern in a matter of seconds when he looked up at Keith. Their eyes met, and no one moved. Then, a slow, crooked smile spread over Lance's lips.

"Heh... Surprise." He said, a weak attempt at lightening the mood.

Keith stared at him, unmoving for a long few moments. He didn't know what to say.

"Yeah, surprise."  
That wasn't either of their voices. A loud bang echoed through the alley, and Keith felt a sudden sharp, throbbing pain in his shoulder. Then, another bang, and another throbbing pain in his abdomen. His vision became blurry and he tumbled back to the ground, taking in deep breaths. Panic began to well up inside him, and his hands fumbled over his stomach. When he lifted them, all he saw was red. And the last image in his mind was Lance tackling Nyma, grabbing at a gun in her hand.

Darkness greeted him with open arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesus! There! Chapter 2! Read it you ANIMALS!


	3. A Day in Bed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Literally the title.

 

 

Warm.

Warmth was the first thing that came to mind. Warmth and comfort. Like heaters pointing everywhere, like being wrapped in layers and layers of comfy blankets and pillows. There was nothing he wanted more than to sink into the blankets and pillows and stay there forever.

Pain.

Pain was the second thing.  
A throbbing pain was coming from his abdomen, followed swiftly by a similar pain in his shoulder. Keith groaned where he lay, willing the pain to stop and go away so he could sleep comfortably. The last thing he needed right now was to be reminded of-

Oh.  
Oh shit.

Keith's eyes snapped open, but quickly closed again from the light in the room. He blinked blearily, moving his hand up to rub at his eyes. A stabbing pain stopped him short and he nearly shouted.

"I wouldn't move too much if I were you."

Keith turned his head, still trying to blink away sleep as he searched for the familiar voice. "Nng..?" Was his only response to the comment as he, once again, tried to use his arm. He swore under his breath, using his other arm to push himself up from under the blanket. Keith looked around wearily, taking in the room. Or... small apartment, as the kitchen was a few feet to his right and a TV sat in the left corner. A door led, to what Keith assumed, was the bathroom, and another on the opposite wall probably to outside. And, standing by the small kitchen bar island, was an annoyingly familiar boy.

"Ugh." Was all Keith managed to utter before flopping back down on the bed. He winced, feeling the strain on his stomach. It hurt. A lot.

"Wow," Lance spoke, "nice to see you too, sunshine. Welcome to the land of the living, took you long enough."

Keith didn't respond. He was too busy shutting his eyes tightly and trying to get used to the throbbing in his muscles. He moved the blankets out of the way to look down at himself for the first time, and noticed with slight embarrassment that he did not have his shirt on. Bandages wrapped around his midsection, coming up at an angle over his injured shoulder and back down around his stomach again.

He tried to sit up.  
"Woah, woah, slow down," Lance rushed over to the bed upon hearing Keith's extended and pained groan, a look of sudden worry and fret on his face. He rested a hand on Keith's chest and gently pushed him back down. "You have to rest."

Keith's skin heated up at the touch, and he quickly swatted the boy's hand away. "No, I don't. I need to leave, I need to call Pidge, and-and the police, and-"

Lance looked stern, his gaze boring into Keith's. "No. You need to stay here and rest so you can heal. You were shot, Keith. Twice." His gaze suddenly softened. He looked down, then away, his voice dropping to a whisper.  
"You could've died..."

Keith felt his eyes widen, and his hand tighten at the words.

He could've died.

He'd been shot twice. All because of...

"You're a criminal!" Keith blurted, glaring down at Lance, who was now sitting cross legged on the floor beside the mattress.

Lance's head immediately turned away. He didn't look at Keith when he said, "Yeah... What of it?"

Keith couldn't think of anything to say. Lance was a criminal. He wasn't even denying it. Did Hunk know? Did Pidge? Of course Pidge wouldn't know. Keith couldn't decide what to ask first, or where to start. So he said the most obvious first question, one that Lance had probably heard countless times before.

"Why?"

The look that passed Lance's face, even for the briefest of seconds, made Keith's stomach churn. But before he could even begin to form another sentence, Lance was up on his feet, walking back over to the island. His hand worked through his dark brown hair, his other hand shoved in his jean pocket. "I get asked that a lot," he chuckled. "I don't think you really wanna know. Let's just say, I have some... Financial issues. It doesn't really matter anyways... What does matter right now is that you get better. I can't have someone dying on my hands, god, I wouldn't be able to live with that. Y'know?"

Keith gave him a weird look, his eyes narrowing at the young boy standing on the other side of the room. Lance had, at first, Keith admitted, seemed like a really honest to goodness guy. Granted, a little all over the place, and a little annoying- okay, really annoying- but this? Keith would never in a million years have guessed that this was what he did in his spare time. He robbed banks. Pulled heists. And even with what Lance had just told him, Keith couldn't help having his doubts about how many people Lance has probably killed in the process.  
Then Keith's expression changed, and he felt a heated blush spread over his cheeks. He looked away quickly, swallowing a thick lump in his throat. Lance had been the one on the motorcycle that night. Lance had been the one to beat him up. Lance had been that close, hot breath against his mouth, with that devilishly playful smirk-

"Hey, dude, are you alright?" Keith jumped at the sudden intrusion of his thoughts, frantically pulling at the sheets to cover himself.  
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." Was all he said in response to Lance, who was at the moment giving him a considerate look.

"Uh, alright... I'm gonna head out, get some take out. Be back in a bit." Lance said quickly, grabbing a sweater from the small coat rack and leaving out the door.

Keith thought it a bit strange how quickly Lance always seemed to leave. In any situation, he was always there and then suddenly not there. It gave Keith a weird feeling. Was he really going to get take out? Or was he just making up an excuse to go meet up with his partners? Was he going to use the stolen money?

Keith rubbed his eyes furiously, rolling onto his back and knocking his head against the pillow. Why was he even thinking about these things? He had more important stuff to worry about right now. Like the fact that he was in the house of a criminal, had been shot twice, and he had no idea where his phone was.

And with that thought, Keith was sent into a whirlwind of panic. Where was his phone?

He quickly searched his jeans- thank god Lance had not removed them too- only to turn up nothing. He remembered; the last place his phone had been was in his jacket pocket, but where was his jacket now? It was nowhere in the apartment that he could see, and he began to wonder if Lance had taken it. To keep him quiet, maybe? To keep him from calling the police? It seemed plausible.

It set a stone of dread in Keith's stomach that he couldn't trust Lance. He'd have to second guess everything the man said to him, who knew what kind of lies he could be making up. It only kept Keith on edge the entire time Lance wasn't there.

 

  
It took one hour for Lance to return. Keith had thought that to be a respectable time to get take out, and not to make a quick heist. At the moment they both sat on the bed, the tv playing softly in the background as they ate in silence. Neither of them spoke for a long while.

Keith scratched his cheek, setting the Chinese food down in front of him. He shifted a bit, cringing at the pain in his stomach. He rolled his injured shoulder, trying to release some of the stress building up in his body. He was having way too much activity in his life lately.  
Lance glanced up from his food, watching Keith shift where he sat. He swallowed his food thickly, coughing, and looked away. "Sorry..." He mumbled.

Keith's eyebrows shot up at the word. He turned his head to look at Lance, but quickly looked away in favour of the wall. "Whatever..."

"No, seriously, Keith." Lance said, more sternly this time. Keith didn't turn his head around. "I really, honestly never meant for something like this to happen. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and I didn't know what to do-"

"So this is MY fault?" Keith whipped his head around, feeling irritation creep up on him way too quickly. Lance's eyes widened at the sudden outburst.  
"Uh... A little? But not like, ALL your fault, I made some mistakes too and-"

"Ugh! Just shut up, I'm tired of this half-baked apology." Keith snapped, crossing his arms and looking away. He heard a heavy sigh beside him and bit his lip at the sound, chewing on it. It was a terrible habit of his, and he only ever did it when he was nervous or irritated. Or both.

"Look, be mad or whatever, I don't care. Just get better, and then you can leave, since you hate me that much." Lance said, leaning back against the wall. "It'll make both of our lives a hell of a lot easier."

Keith felt his fists tighten at the words. What a jackass! Was this really how he really was? Was everything he told Hunk just one big fat lie? How far did that lie go? Into his family, even?

The air was thick between them, a tense quiet that only lasted over mutual want to be away from eachother. It was getting late, the sky was getting darker, and Keith's thoughts started to wander in the silence. He wondered what Pidge was thinking right about now. What she was doing, if she was worried about him. Lance should at least have had the decency to tell her, and Keith wondered if he even did. Probably not, he decided, and felt a heavy sigh escape his mouth.

Lance was quick to catch on to it. "What's with the long sigh, Mr. pouty?"

Keith glared in his direction. "Did you tell Pidge?"

Lance gave a baffled look at Keith. "What? No! I can't tell her that. You can tell her, whatever, but I'm not dropping a huge bomb of 'your friend got shot twice and nearly died because of me' on her, just imagine what she'd look like afterwards! Tears, Keith, or worse, angry at me and out for revenge."

"Humph, and here I was thinking that this whole thing was _my_ fault. Isn't that what you said? That it was my fault? Now suddenly it's yours again?"

Lance huffed, throwing his arms in the air. "What is with you? Look, I saved your life, okay, the least you could do is show some respect and thankfulness."

"Maybe," Keith seethed, "you could be just a little more generous and give me back my phone, yeah? And a shirt, too, it's fucking cold as balls in here. Oh, and I still haven't heard an apology for the other night from you, I'd like that. And while you're at it, how about you get some fucking human decency too!"

Lance gaped at Keith, his mouth opening and closing like a fish. He looked angry, and baffled, and a little impressed, too. He knew Keith was snappy, but he hadn't expected this much pure salt.

With another huff, Lance angrily stepped off of the bed, pacing to the kitchen. Out of a drawer he pulled Keith's phone, and tossed it at the boy. Rather roughly, Keith noted, and only shot up the bird at Lance as a response. Quickly his attention was turned to his phone, and noticed his battery was at 37%. He wondered if Lance had a charger, before thinking duh, of course he did. He's fucking loaded, probably.

Before Keith could even look at his messages, a shirt was thrown in his face. He let out an embarrassing squeak and dropped the phone on the bed, pulling the shirt away from his face. He glared up at a smugly grinning Lance.

"Did you just... Squeak?" He asked, raising a slow eyebrow.

Keith blushed and spluttered over his words, glaring up at the boy as he quickly pulled on the shirt. Only afterwards did he realize it was, in fact, not his shirt, but one of Lance's.

"No. And this isn't my shirt, where is my shirt?"

Lance gave a coy smile, rubbing the back of his head as he settled back down on the other side of the bed. "Well, you see, bullets tend to go through things, so when you were shot, well... Your shirt's kind of ruined, man. And then there's the blood, too. I kinda just threw it out."

Keith gave Lance yet another glare, and it felt at this point all he was doing today was glaring.

After a few moments of silence, Lance spoke up again.

"What... Happened the other night?" He questioned.

Keith furrowed his eyes brows, looking back at Lance. Lance gave an exasperated sigh.  
"You said you wanted an apology for what I did the other night. What happened the other night that I did wrong?" He asked, genuine confusion on his face.

Keith took a moment or two to remember exactly what he had said. Oh, yeah. That. Why had he brought that up? In his angry tirade, he had brought it up, that's why.

"O-oh, um, never mind, it was nothing. Just forget about it." Keith quickly dismissed, looking away and pulling the blankets closer.

Lance furrowed his eyebrows at the boy. Then, dreadfully, realization crept onto his face and an evil smile spread over his cheeks. "Oh, that night. And that thing. That's what I did wrong?" He inquired, leaning forward on the bed. Keith's eyes widened a bit.  
"I said forget about it, it doesn't even matter now."

"Uh uh uh, I think I should apologize. Sorry Keith- sorry for kicking your ass, that is." Lance smiled.

Keith's brows set in a firm line, shooting a look at Lance. "You did not! You just caught me off guard. Who carries knives in their sleeves?!"

"People who do bad things carry knives in their sleeves." Lance pointed out, shrugging his shoulder lazily. "They're throwing knives, and I panicked. You have a pretty strong kick, you know. But apparently not too good at dodging."

Keith huffed. "I don't know if that's a compliment or an insult. You sliced up my cheek with those things."

Lance gave an evil smile, leaning over once again. "Yeah, but I fixed that problem, didn't I?" His voice had dropped down to what it had been that night, that low, almost purr that he somehow managed even with his high pitched voice. Keith felt a warmth pooling in his stomach, an unwelcome feeling that he quickly shoved away just as hard as he did Lance in that moment, sending him toppling over the edge of the bed. Lance groaned from where he lay on the floor, rubbing the back of his head and wincing.

"Geez, for a guy who got shot twice you move pretty fast..."

Keith ignored Lance's comment, picking up his phone quickly and checking his messages.

**Missed calls: 12**

**Messages: 6**

_Pidge : Keith, where are you and lovebird at rn? Do you think you could come back and walk me home?_

_Pidge : Fine, asshole. I'll walk myself. If I get killed and/or kidnapped, I'm not giving you any inheritance._

_Pidge : dude wtf you're sleeping????? It's 7pm! Open the door!_

_Pidge : Keith, I swear to god_

_Pidge : fine, ignore me. Just like you did last night. I'm fine with getting another year's worth of milkshakes._

_Pidge : Ass_

 

Keith sank further into his hole of self misery and guilt with every message he read from Pidge. She had to walk home by herself, she had been knocking on his door for who knows how long and he was out getting mixed up with criminals. What a way to start his university life. How many classes had he missed since it had happened? Keith checked the date on his phone. August 21rst. Phew, it had only been a day. That meant he'd only been unconscious for a day and a bit, not too bad.

Lance, at this point, had crawled back on the bed and, unknowingly to Keith, had sat much closer than before. Keith glanced up and did a double take at the boy's proximity, eyeing him strangely. "What do you want?" Keith finally asked.

Lance shrugged, leaning back against the wall and crossing his arms. "Nothing. You know, I took the bullets out and everything, but I'm still not a miracle worker. You shouldn't over exert yourself like you did a now, shoving me off the bed like that. It hurt, didn't it?" He gave Keith a soft look. Keith only rolled his eyes at him.

But it was true, it had hurt to shove Lance off the bed. And all his jerky movements today were really straining his abdomen, and the shove had made the pain in his shoulder worsen. He hadn't really been paying attention up until now, but realized with a sick feeling that it would take a while for him to heal. What was he gonna do until then?  
Well, for starters, he should probably text Pidge.

"Be right back." Lance said, getting up and going to the kitchen. Keith looked down at his phone and started to text Pidge rapid apologies. By the time Lance came back, a glass of water in hand and a couple pills in the other, Keith had easily sent double the amount of texts that Pidge had. He avoided the topic of 'bullets' and just settled with 'injured' instead.

He looked up. "What's that?" Keith asked, eyeing the pills Lance held out to him.

Lance gave an exasperated eyeroll. "Painkillers, dummy. Do you want them or not?"

Keith eyed them for a second longer. Again, he started to second guess Lance's kindness. What if they were poison? Probably to get Keith out of the picture so Lance wouldn't have to coddle him day and night. Probably, but also, probably not.

  
He took them with a scowl along with the water and swallowed them quickly. Without a word, Keith set to glass down on the bedside table and curled under the blankets, facing away from Lance. He heard a small sigh come from behind him and felt a tingle in his chest. Guilt? No. Pity? No. Keith tried to place the feeling, but all he could really focus on was the growing tiredness in his eyes and the dull and fading pain of his body. He'd think about it tomorrow, he decided.

Tomorrow would probably be better.


	4. Party Crashers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith takes some friendly advice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh gosh! This took longer to post than I thought it would. ^.^" sorry guys. But here! Because I'm an impatient piece of shit, and I only started writing this so I could write some good ol' Klance smut, have at it ya animals.

 

A low hum came from Keith's mouth, a gentle relaxation washing over him. The air was warm, but not too warm, and he curled into himself as he shifted into a more comfortable position. He blinked his eyes tiredly, glancing up at the sun above him. Lance smiled down at him, reaching a gentle hand down to caress his cheek. Keith leaned into the warm hand. He thought it a bit weird that his head was laying in the boy's lap, but who was he to complain when everything felt so right. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply.  
Chancing another glance up at Lance, Keith felt his eyebrows furrow. Lance was gone.

The leg his head had been resting on suddenly disappeared, too, and Keith's head hit a hard floor. He jolted up, looking around as the warmth started to seep out of him. He tried to make out his surroundings, but he couldn't. His eyes blurred everything in view.

He tried to yell, to ask where Lance went, why he had left so suddenly. Fear began to grip him, a horrible foreboding. It felt as if something was approaching, like someone was coming toward him, but he saw nothing. His chest tightened, then he froze. A gun was being held in front of his head, the holder blurry and unknown, and the click of safety went off. Keith sucked in a sharp breath-

He was awake. A cold sweat gripped him like a vice, he felt sticky and his hands shook. He tried to move, to sit up on the bed, when he noticed a heavy weight on his chest. A lone shaft of sunlight seeped through the window curtains, landing softly on the dark arms wrapped around him.

Keith slowly laid back down, steadying his breath. He glanced over at Lance, who was sleeping soundly beside him. The boy, Keith noticed, looked a lot more vulnerable and small when he slept than when he was awake. He would have never guessed Lance's actual personality from just looking at him like this. He reached a hand up and unconsciously traced a scar on Lance's forehead. A small, barely noticeable scar from a distance. No one could have seen it unless they were very, very close.

Which was what Keith was right now.

With that realization, Keith's eyes widened and he quickly scrambled away to the edge of the bed, throwing Lance's arm off. He let out a pained groan from the sudden movement and held his stomach tightly, taking a few steadying breathes. Lance stirred in his sleep and slowly moved his arms up, lazily rubbing his eyes as he sat up. He gave a big yawn, pulling his arms up and and above his head to stretch out the sleep from his body. Keith couldn't help but let his eyes linger on Lance's shirtless body-

Wait, shirtless?

"What the fuck, dude?" Keith spluttered, scooting further away from him. "What are you doing?"

Lance shrugged his shoulders, tired eyes glancing over at Keith. "What? You expect me to sleep on the floor? Nuh uh, this is my bed." He said, snapping his fingers at Keith. "Be glad I don't make YOU sleep on the floor."

Keith glared at Lance, shoving him roughly on the shoulder. "At least put on a shirt, weirdo!"

Lance laughed at that, flopping back down on the pillows and snuggling further into the blankets. "Nah, shirts are uncomfortable."

Keith gave an exasperated sigh, looking around the room with a pout on his face. He stretched out his arms and yawned, feeling his sore muscles resisting all his movements. He really needed to get moving around again, staying in a bed for two days did not sound healthy.  
With a deep intake of breath, Keith swung his legs over the edge of the bed and planted his feet on the floor. He let out the breath and sat there, on the edge of the bed.

Lance had, at this point, sat up from where he was snuggling into the blankets. He watched Keith from behind with a raised eyebrow, shifting as he got ready to catch the boy in case he fell. But Keith didn't move, just sat there.

He crawled over the sheets nearer to him, smiling devilishly. Keith was about to try and stand up when he felt his shirt lift and something soft and warm press into the small of his back. With a squeak, Keith shot up from the bed, tumbling forward onto the floor and groaning in pain from the sudden exertion. He turned a seething death glare behind him at the culprit, only to be met with a chuckle coming from Lance's lips.

"Sorry dude." Lance waved a lazy hand in front of him. "Didn't expect you to be so sudden. Calm down, and maybe you'll feel better faster."

Keith's glare only turned sharper. His hand drifted under the back of his shirt, feeling his skin still tingling from where it had come in contact with Lance's lips. Heat rose to his pale cheeks and Keith felt like crawling into a corner and dying. "Fuck you." He said, putting as much venom and anger into the words as he could possibly manage.

Lance only chuckled, rolling back onto the other side of the bed. He stood up and stretched once more before walking over to the kitchen. "What do you want to eat?" He called over his shoulder as he rummaged through the fridge.

Keith slowly crawled his way back into the bed, wincing with every movement. "Lobster would be nice. I bet you have tons of lobster with all that money you hoard." He bit, lying back down. For a long moment Lance didn't respond, and Keith looked up curiously. Had he touched a nerve or something?  
But Lance was there, leaning back against the counter and quietly watching the toaster.

Keith rolled his eyes. "You gonna ignore me now? It's true. You're probably loaded, why the hell are you living in a tiny apartment like this?"

Again, Lance didn't respond. Keith felt his eyebrows furrow at the silence. He'd touched a nerve again without even knowing, and was met with a dejected Lance. He wondered, for a brief moment, how much money Lance even got from all this. How many people he worked with that he had to split the money with constantly. Was it even worth the while?

But Keith didn't know how to ask. How to bring up the topic when even a simple comment shut the man down. The room stayed silent after that, the only sound was the toaster popping up the toast. Lance placed a plate of the toast beside Keith and ate his own quietly, avoiding the mullet's gaze.

  
And that's how it went. One week passed, then two, of awkward conversations and tense silence. Every once in awhile Lance would tease him and they'd argue over little things. Keith felt he'd be lying if he didn't say he was beginning to get used to the small apartment, to the feeling of a warm body lying beside him. It was actually comforting- their arguments- because no matter what they always had ready quips for the other. Like a game of tennis, passing the ball back and forth until they were both tired and worn out. But in a good way.

And Keith could feel himself healing. Getting better every day. He could move his shoulder semi freely now, and could walk around without wincing on every step. It honestly set a small stone of dread in his stomach, to know that he could leave now. Whenever he wanted, actually, he didn't need to be nurtured every day.

Hopefully Lance hadn't noticed.

"Where are you going?" Keith asked from where he leaned against the kitchen counter, watching Lance search his closet vigorously, throwing clothes all over the floor.

"Out." He answered, holding up a black suit in front of himself. He sent a sly smirk at Keith. "What? Scared I'm gonna get hooked up? Jealous much."

Keith almost choked on his cereal, looking away quickly. "N-no, I'm just curious. I've just never seen you get all dressed up." He swallowed and looked back up, smiling. "And I'm not jealous of some girl about to have a mete ochre 5/10 night in bed."

Lance glared from across the room. "Hey! I'm at least an 8/10. At _least_. And who says it'll be a girl?" He winked at Keith, and once again, Keith had to take a moment to avoid spitting out all his food. Lance chuckled and shrugged. "Well, it's really not like I want to get all dressed up. I have to, to blend in, you know." He said, picking up an intricately decorated red jacket.

"With what? A circus?" Keith raised a brow at the jacket.

An eye roll was all he had as an answer, and Keith smiled at his win. The win was short lived, though.

"Yeah," Lance said, picking up the black suit and opening the bathroom door. "Well at least I don't have a crop top for a jacket."  
He closed the door just in time to avoid getting hit in the head by an empty plastic bowl. Keith huffed and rested his chin on the back of his hand, looking around the room. Getting used to the apartment was one thing, but actually spending all his time in it was another. It was nice, yes, and somewhat comforting, but God was it boring as hell. There wasn't really anything to do after all. With a sick feeling Keith realized just how much time he was spending here. He'd missed a shit ton of classes already, and thinking about returning to them wasn't quite an appealing thought.

Keith's mind drifted to the closed bathroom door, staring at it absentmindedly. Lance took some of his classes, so it was safe to say he was probably studying something similar. But his classes were only a small portion of his intricate life, it seemed. Keith wondered really for a brief moment what the boy got into in his escapades. What kind of life did he lead with his history?

Then the bathroom door opened and Keith's eyes widened.  
If it wasn't how well the suit fit, then it was Lance's slicked back hair and dazzling smile that caught Keith off guard. The boy adjusted the light blue tie that complemented the shear black of the suit, sending a smirk Keith's way. "What? Cat got your tongue?" Lance strode over in two easy strides and leaned over the counter towards Keith. "Am I that cat?" He wiggled his eyebrows, and Keith sucked in a sharp breath.

"What the fuck, Lance?" He glared, hitting his arm. "Where are you going, really?" He demanded.

Lance shrugged, adjusting the cuffs of his suit as he walked over to a body mirror on the wall. "I told you, I'm just going out. Nothing you need to worry your little wart about." He dismissed as he put a few final touches on his appearance.

Keith stood straighter, crossing his arms. "I'm serious, Lance. No one who dresses like that is just going 'out'. Tell me the truth."

Lance glanced over at Keith and, noticing his posture and firm look, heaved a heavy sigh.  
"Fine, fine." He waved his hand around, walking over. "I'm going with Nyma and Rolo and a couple other guys to a party. A celebration actually, of a newly made company. Some sort of now loaded corporation I didn't bother to remember the name of at the meeting. The owner- Jace Baine, his name is- is throwing a huge thing at his house, there's gonna be a lot of big names there. And our Intel," Lance avoided Keith's gaze as he spoke, "tells us he's got a safe bellow the house that stores a shit ton of the money they make off the sales and business deals. We're going for it tonight."

Keith took a deep breath and let it out slowly, letting the information sink in. "So," He started carefully, "you're going on a dangerous, possibly life threatening heist that could put you in jail forever... And... What is your role in this, exactly?"

Lance gave an attempt at a sly grin. "I'm pulling the strings. I'm gonna be up in the party making sure everything goes as planned." He rummaged in his pocket for a second before pulling out a black earpiece. "This is how I'm going to be communicating with everyone. If this all goes as planned..." His voice hushed a bit as he spoke, his eyes trailing to the ground. "We won't ever need to go against the law again." He gave a weak smile, looking somewhat guilty.

Keith took a deep breath and watched him for some time. Looking at Lance now, Keith knew he wasn't going to last much longer in keeping it a secret. The boy's eyes drifted over his face multiple times, trying to read Keith's expression and determine what he thought of it all. A long moment passed, before Keith spoke in the breath he let out.

"Take me with you."

Lance's eyebrows shot up faster than Keith could ever have expected, and the expression of sheer surprise stayed there for a long time. Keith held his breath as he waited for an answer, letting his arms drop at his sides.

"...what?" Lance asked dumbly, his eyebrows knit together.

Keith felt his hopeful gaze turn into a hard glare. "You heard me. I'm- if this plan really has to go perfectly, shouldn't you get as much help as you can?"

"Well, yeah," Lance looked a little panicked now, "b-but, I mean, you've never- you can't just- what if you get hurt?!"

"I could ask the same of you!" Keith threw his arms in the air. "You could get killed doing this, the least you can do is let me make sure that doesn't happen!"

Lance scoffed. "And what are you going to do, then? Crack the vault open? Drive the get away car? This isn't exactly a learn as you go operation, Keith."

He shrugged, crossing his arms again. "Then I'll just have to stick by your side. I'll do what you do- keep everyone distracted long enough that this goes without a hitch."

Lance seemed to consider him, looking him up and down. The silence that stretched after that made Keith uncomfortable, and he shifted where he stood while he waited for an answer. Finally, Lance smiled and chuckled, dragging a hand down his long face. He stayed quiet for a second, then raised his hands dismissively.

"Fine, fine. Fine, you can come with." He smirked, giving Keith a once over with his eyes. "But you are definitely not going looking like that."

  
__________

 

Lance hadn't been lying.

There were easily a hundred people lingering outside of the house- mansion, actually- on the hillside. Cars lined up on the hill, parked for the night as people strolled through the night towards the party. Limos rolled up to the front and let guests out at the front doors.

Lance rolled the car the two rode up to the red carpet that rolled down the stairs to the road and smirked at Keith. "Lady's first." He gestured to the door. Keith glared at him, opening the door and stepping out. Lance did the same on his side and tossed the keys to a servant standing to the side. "Take care of her, she's precious." He said, gesturing to the blue sports car. It still baffled Keith, when he'd first seen the vehicle he thought for sure he was hallucinating. Thing must have easily costed well over half a million.

Keith scanned the crowd of guests. He was dressed in a dark red tux with black accents and a tie, and his long hair was pulled back into ponytail. A red head band pushed back his bangs and he sported a very expensive looking golden watch- courtesy of Lance- on his left wrist. Even with all this, he still felt underdressed compared to everyone else.

A hip bumped his and pulled Keith out of his thoughts, a dazzling white smile directed at him. "Think you can handle this, pretty boy?" Lance teased, snaking an arm over Keith's shoulders as he guided them both up the red carpeted steps towards the house. Keith gulped, not only because of Lance's close proximity, but also because he was starting to feel the weight of this whole thing sitting on his shoulders. He shifted a little bit away from Lance, forcing a cocky smile.

"Oh don't worry about me, I can handle myself. I'm just wondering if you'll be able to keep up with all this~." He purred, dragging a lone finger under Lance's chin. Lance blinking rapidly, and Keith smiled as he walked a few steps in front of him, waving a hand to Lance. "You should probably close your mouth, Lance, you don't want to catch flies."

Lance stared a moment longer before shaking his head, easily catching up to Keith with his long legs. He shook his head. "You really gotta stop doing that..." He mumbled, looking forward as the doors came in view.

Keith's eyebrows furrowed. "Doing what?"

Lance looked back at him with an incredulous expression. "Are you...? Serious?" He threw his arms in the air, "You've gotta be kidding me. Ugh, never mind, just... Forget about it."  
Waving a dismissive hand, Lance stopped in his tracks, speaking with the bouncer standing in front of the door. Keith watched his face light up as he spoke to the large man, and watched with a little amusement at the dimples in his cheeks when he smiled.  
"...he's with me. Keith?" Lance looked over at Keith, raising an eyebrow at him.

Keith quickly looked away, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Uh... Yeah." He answered, hoping it was the right thing to say. Lance smiled and waved at the bouncer before grabbing Keith's hand, pulling him into the house. Keith swallowed at the gesture and quickened his step to keep in time with Lance's pace.

The place had hundreds of people, no doubt, but because of the sheer size, it wasn't even tat crowded. Occasionally Keith bumped into a women or a man, getting sent dirty Rich People Glares (TM). Finally, thank god, Lance slowed them both to a stop somewhere to the far right of the room(ballroom? It felt large enough to be considered a ballroom). Lance adjusted his suit and gave a side glance at Keith as he began explaining things.

"So the plan, as it were, is actually really easy. For us, at least." He spoke in a hushed voice, but his face portrayed no sign of any evil plotting. He kept his smile and waved politely to passing persons who gave them curious glances.  
"Nyma is manning the get away car, and she has visual on almost every area of the mansion, inside and out. Rolo and his partners are sneaking into the mansion out the side. As I said before, our job is to deter any suspicions in any of the guests, and to make sure Jace- the host- stays up here and away from the action. If it makes it easier for you, just stick by my side most of the time, but not too much. Mingle a little, will you? And none of that Brooding Teenager shit."

"Brooding Teenager shit? What the fuck?" Keith hit him in the arm, Lance laughed.

"Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Go get us drinks or something, I'm gonna try and find Jace."  
And with that, he was gone, leaving Keith alone in a crowd of richer than you'll ever be people. Even with Lance's uncanny height, he couldn't be found in the crowd.

Taking a deep breath, Keith began walking to the bar on the other end of the room. He smiled politely at the people who looked at him, and, with a little encouragement, winked at a girl a couple meters away. He saw her smile and giggle, and cursed himself, because goddammit now he'd have to actually talk to her. It would've been much easier if she'd just shrugged him off.  
She semi-sashayed her way over to the bar he was now leaning against, flashing him a flirtatious smile. Keith swallowed a lump in his throat and forced another smile at her.

"Hey, I've never seen you before." The girl leaned over the counter next to him, resting her chin on a hand. "You're way too pretty and young to be rich. Are you a model?"

Keith flashed his most polite smile at her as he waved the bar man over. "No, I'm not. I'm here with someone, actually." He answered, then turned to ask for two drinks.

The girl pouted at Keith, fluttering her eyelashes. "Oh, are you? That's disappointing. She must be real happy though with someone as pretty as you."

Keith let out a breathy chuckle. "Well, actually, HE is pretty annoying." He gave a crooked smile.

The girl's eyes widened and she seemed quite flustered, standing straighter and fanning herself quickly. "Oh! Oh, I am so sorry." She quieted her voice, giving him an inquisitive look. "I didn't realize you swung that way."

Keith spluttered and almost spilled the drink the bar man had handed over to him, looking everywhere but at the girl. "N-no, I mean- I mean yes, but- but it's not like that, I swear! He's not even into me that way." He said quickly, but felt his face drop. He knew it was true, but saying it out loud seemed to set it in that yes, Lance was not into him like that.

Right?

The girl gave a playful smile, nudging Keith with her elbow and flipping her curly cherry hair. "If he doesn't like you like that then make him _want_ you like that. It's basically the same thing, Honey, it just takes a little bit of hip swinging and assertiveness. Works for me, at least."

Keith quirked an eyebrow at her, considering the advice. "...you think so?"

She laughed, a fluttering sound, and waved her hand in a dismissive manner. "Oh I know so. It's never failed me to this day." She adjusted her dress a little and stood back from the bar. "I'm Vanessa by the way. Keith, right?"

Keith's eyes widened and he looked around quickly, "How do you-"

"Did you really think we were gonna leave Lance alone up here?" Vanessa raised an eyebrow at him. "He's already a total fuck up sometimes, and besides, there's no way he'd be able to handle leading the plan AND keeping the party going all by himself. That's way too much on someone's plate."

Keith felt a prickle of irritation rising in his shoulders at the insult, opening his mouth to call her out, but he stopped himself. It was half true- the too much on one plate part- so he let it go. Besides, getting on these people's bad sides already got him shot so he'd play it cool for now.

Vanessa let out a little sigh and smiled wide at him. "Well, time to go work my magic. Farewell."  
With a fluttering wave, she disappeared amongst the people. Keith was left alone, his thoughts and his two drinks growing warm by every second.

It took a few minutes, but finally Keith spotted the tan head of hair bouncing up and down with a loud laugh. He was with a man who looked about in his late twenties, another man in his forties and a plethora of females hanging off their sides like tattoos. Lance was chatting with a few of the girls, flashing flirtatious smiles here and there as the girls giggled. Keith felt his hands tighten around the glasses he held, narrowing his eyes at particularly clingy girl who's hand was exploring a little too much.

"Ah, Keith!" Lance smiled wide at the sight of the brooding boy holding their drinks. He peeled himself from the girls and met Keith in the middle. He leaned down slightly, perching his face close to Keith's as he took the drink, brushing their fingers. "You took so long, I missed you."  
Keith gulped, his hand tightening even more on his own drink. Then Lance smiled, pulling back and walking backwards back to the girls. "I'd like to introduce you to someone. Jace, Keith. Keith, Jace." He gestured to the man who look in his late twenties.

Jace smiled a big, toothy smile and took Keith's hand before he could even lift it, shaking it roughly. "Nice to meet you. Jace Baine, owner of Alter Corp."

Keith gave an unsure smile, nodding. "Nice to meet you. Keith Kogane, owner of... Well, my house, I guess."

Jace let out a booming laugh, letting Keith's hand drop. Discretely, he wiped it on his coat, unsettled by the amount of sweat that had been on the man's hand.

"Funny," Jace said, "I like you. Mr. McLaine said you were sharp."

"Uh... Thanks." Keith smiled a little wider, stepping to Lance's side. "Well I guess he's not always wrong."

Lance's eyes widened and and he glared at Keith, "Hey, I'm never wrong. You just don't see things my way."

Keith rolled his eyes. "I hope I never do."

Jace laughed again, but this one was more controlled. "I see a blooming friendship in front of me, that's for sure."

Keith sipped his drink as Lance began to change the subject, and cringed a little at the taste. Definitely expensive, he thought, but still. Wine wasn't his thing. Watching to see if anyone was looking, Keith quickly put his almost full glass on a tray held by a passing butler. He cleared his throat and turned back to the conversation, trying to see if he could slip anything in. But alas, Jace was gone and so was the forty-year old. The girls, though, were still at large.

"...-ever want to see, I could show you." Lance was talking especially with the clingy one from earlier, and Keith felt his eyes narrowing at the sight. She was leaning against his arm and trailing her fingers over his chest, and poor Lance was _this close_ to becoming a stuttering mess.

Ugh. Keith watched the show going down in front of him, trying his best not to just angrily walk away. But she was being so touchy... He wanted to shove her away and pull Lance away for himself. Yes, he was an annoying asshole, and a criminal, and didn't know when to shut up, but by this point Keith really did consider him somewhat more than a friend. Or at least, he hoped that's what they were.

But this? Seeing this made anger boil up inside him. One moment Lance was flirting with him and pulling stupid stunts that lead to their faces always being centimetres apart, and then he goes and turns around and flirts with every girl in the viccinity. It was confusing.

_Assertiveness, honey._

Vanessa came into view across the room and Keith stared at her for a few seconds, her words echoing in his mind. How would he even start something like that? How does one assert his way into getting fucked like no tomorrow? Was it really that easy?

Nah.

But-

"Ha, Lance you're so fun. Just how fun are you?" The girl clinging to Lance like a pretty little _leech_ was circling a finger on the boy's neck, and Lance gave a smirk.

"Oh, I'm real fun. In more places than you'd think..." He said, leaning towards the girl. Keith felt something in him snap.

"Lance." Keith spoke up, a little louder than necessary, and watched the space between Lance's face and the girl's gradually separate. The girl gave Keith a once over and made and disgusted, annoyed face.

"Uh, yeah?" Lance asked, swallowing and trying to compose himself quickly. The girl dislodged herself and Keith saw his opportunity rise out of the dark water.

"I need to talk with you. About the recent deal we made. With that other company. Remember?" Keith prompted, looking between the girl and him. Lance looked confused for a second before realization dawned on his face and he nodded quickly.

"Ah, yes, that. Excuse me ladies, I'll be right back." He said, shooting finger guns at the girls. They giggled and dispersed, and before Lance could get in another word, Keith pulled him roughly by the arm.

He pulled them down a hallway, and walked down several more, before they reached one that was empty. Keith tested multiple doors before he found one that was unlocked and quickly stepped into the dark room, pulling Lance with.

Lance blinked, adjusting to the darkness and looked around. "What's up? Did something happen to compromise the plan?" He asked, stepping to the side so Keith could close the door.

Without any warning, Lance was pushed up against the wall beside the door and Keith's lips crashed against his, a messy, uncoordinated kiss that ended with clashing teeth and bruised lips. This didn't deter Keith though, no, if anything it spurred him on, making him press his body flush against Lance's. The devil was gripping handfuls of Keith's suit, to his surprise, and pulling him closer and snaking his tongue through parted lips to explore his mouth. A soft breathy moan came out of Keith's mouth and Lance swallowed it up eagerly, turning his head slightly to better fit their wanton mouths together. Their breathes came out of their noses in sharp whistles, and Keith's chest began to hurt, but he couldn't bring himself to separate from the taller boy. It was a blinding need to go deeper, have more, press closer. But, with one final bite to Lance's bottom lip, he forced himself to pull away.  
They both let out laboured breaths as they stared at each other in the darkness, a single strand of saliva breaking between their lips. Lance's chest heaved, and a slow smile crept up his red lips.

"Didn't see that coming. Not that I'm complaining. But this isn't part of the plan, hotshot."

Keith wiped his mouth with his sleeve, taking a step back and putting a hand to his hip. "No, it isn't. But sometimes plans don't go accordingly. Besides, I had to make something clear."

Lance raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "And what exactly are you making clear in this situation?" He asked, his breaths slowly returning to normal.

Keith took a step forward again, looking up in Lance's face, centimetres from his. He brought a hand up to Lance's chin and pulled him into another kiss, though this one was quick and rough. He pulled back, running a thumb over the boy's bottom lip, looking up into clouded eyes. "You still have to pay me back for getting me shot. Twice."

Keith let go and stepped back again, watching with slight amusement as Lance moved forward slightly, trying to keep close, but failing as Keith turned around and walked over to the door leading out. He scanned the empty hallway behind it to make sure nobody had followed them in their departure.

Lance was shaking his head where he stood, eyeing Keith. "You're a piece of work, you know that? Really."

Keith rolled his eyes, turning around again and walking nearer to him. "Says the one who just ate my face after flirting with several girls."

Lance raised his hands in defence, shaking his head. "Nah, that's normal. That's what guys do. Apparently not you though, you're too busy thinking about my dick to notice all the boobs it seems."

Keith raised his eyebrows at Lance. "Do you hear yourself sometimes? Because I really don't think you do. Really. At all."

Lance opened his mouth to retort when he stopped, eyes widening. His hand flew to his ear piece and his eyes focused on the ground. Keith stepped closer, furrowing his eyebrows. "Lance...?"

Lance looked up sharply, face grave. "We got caught. We need to leave- now."


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well- it's kind of edited, but not /really/ edited- man. I hit a real writer's block for this.
> 
> Sorry.

In hindsight, making out with someone you barely know in a random room at a mansion you're in the middle of robbing where a booming party is taking place was probably not the best idea.

But then again, when had Keith ever had any good ideas? Most were on impulse, so yes, they ended in disaster a lot. This was his one night to control that and whoop-de-doo the po-po's gonna get you.

At the moment, though, he didn't really have time to think about his stupidly impulsive personality. There were more pressing matters afoot.

"Shit! Shit! Fucking shit!"   
Lance was letting out a stream of non stop curses, pacing the dark room and running his hands through his hair in stress. Keith could hear guests in the party becoming frantic with the new news, and lights of moving cars were flashing through the window signalling that many of them were leaving. For a second, Keith let himself be amused by the reactions, but that second of amusement was quickly snuffed out by the stress of the situation. With a start, he jumped back from the door when voices began to carry down the halls.

"I saw them come down here earlier."

It was a man, Keith realized, but didn't recognize the voice. Lance wore a similar expression to his, that of panic, and in silent agreement both of them ended up by the window. It was large, big enough to fit them both- but it was on the second floor. Not too bad of a drop, if it weren't for the rose bushes lining the side wall.

"Ugh, really? Who has rose bushes anymore?!" Lance dragged his fingers through his hair again, and Keith had a small moment of wow he actually looks kinda hot when he's stressed out but that really wasn't the biggest issue right now.

"We just have to leap far enough away form the window to avoid the bushes." Keith said in a steadier voice than he had expected to use. It was strange, but he felt oddly calm in the moment. Not really thrilling or terrifying like he thought it would be- that is, until he took another glance out the window and gulped.

"Uh, ladies first." He smiled at Lance, gesturing to the window and bowing. Lance glared at him, shaking his head.

"Nuh uh, I'm not leaping out of a window. You go first since you're so eager to break an ankle."

Keith rolled his eyes. "You're really difficult, you know that?" He stuck out his tongue at the boy then turned to the window, opening it with a grunt and clambering onto the sill. He swayed for a second, eyeing his best landing options. It was a bit difficult to find anything in the dark of the night, but before he could even try to find a landing option, a shout came from behind him, followed by a hard shove to his back, and suddenly both he and Lance were flying out the window and gunshots were firing in rapid succession.

"What the FUCK-" Keith shouted as he scrambled around in midair for a split second. His back collided with hard ground and he heaved for air, the wind knocked completely out of him. Lance coughed by his side, and in a moment of pure rage dulled down by pain Keith kicked him in the shin. The angry shout that came out of him was satisfactory enough to soothe over Keith's anger- for now.

Petty anger aside, they didn't really have time to launch into another argument as a stream of bullets hit the ground nearby. They were both scrambling to their feet and Keith had no choice but to follow Lance through the decorative bushes towards the road.

"What the fuck was that?!" He whisper shouted at the boy, shoving him roughly from behind. Lance shoved his hand away and stared back at him, wide eyed and panicked.

"They were nearly at the room and you were taking so long to just jump, I had to do something! I don't really feel like going to jail tonight."

Keith glared, walking quickly passed Lance. "Well a little warning would be nice next time."

"Ha!" Lance snorted, "You didn't give me any warning when you started snogging my face. We're on the same boat amigo."

Keith rolled his eyes, turning sharply back at him. "Look, just tell me where we're going so that we can actually go there and get the hell out of here before I get shot AGAIN."

Lance raised his eyebrows, lifting his hands in defence. "Jeez, calm down dude. Our ride's right here."

Walking forward a couple more yards, Lance pushed some bushes aside to reveal a side road. A large vehicle idled to the side with a number of people standing outside of it. Among them, Keith noticed, was Vanessa. She spotted them first.

"Took you two long enough!" She called out. Her voice was much less fluttery and soft than it was in the party, it was almost startling how different it was. She no longer wore her dress, but instead it was tucked under her arm and she now adorned a pair of shorts and a tank top, with a black leather jacket. Her hair was tied back messily, and, for the first time Keith noticed the little mole on her right cheek.

"Hey! It wasn't my fault I took so long. Blame him." Said Lance from behind, lightly punching Keith. He whirled on him and glared.

"No, it was just as much yours as mine." With an angry pout, Keith turned his heel and marched over to Vanessa. She laughed at them and threw a lazy arm over Keith's shoulders, leading them to the back of the vehicle. "Sorry Lance, but I'm a little inclined to believe Keith more than you. He's cuter."

Lance's jaw dropped in a look of disbelief, his eyes snapping from Keith to Vanessa before his face, too, settled on an angry pout.

"Whatever. Can we just go? I'd rather not go to jail tonight, thank you very much."

They hopped into the back of the vehicle, a few other guys climbing on after. It was an army style truck, with the seats facing eachother. Keith settled in a corner. With a bit of spite, Lance sat opposite to him and Vanessa to his side. The other three men sat around them, all eyeing Keith warily.

Vanessa picked up on the stares and she let out an exasperated sigh. "Really, guys?"   
She turned to Keith and plastered a wide smile on her face, gesturing to the three men around her. "Keith, these are some of the other members. Remmy, Lars and Joshua."

"Hey!" The one called Joshua spoke up, "I told you not to call me that. It's Josh, just Josh."

Vanessa snickered "Nah, I think I like Joshua better. It intensifies your nerd levels by at least 50 percent."

Keith listened to the idle chatter, a bit on edge at how casual everyone was. He glanced up at Lance, who's eyes quickly looked away. Had he been staring at Keith? The devil narrowed his eyes at Lance, and watched as his eyes once again found their way up to his own. They stared at eachother, and Keith felt his chest flutter. He felt vulnerable under the gaze, but Lance seemed to want to hold in there. In a way, it was intense. So Keith cut it off and looked away quickly.

 

So it turned out that they'd only managed to snag half the amount they'd hoped to get. After a brief meeting that involved a lot of bickering between Lance and Rolo, they all decided to split half of the amount they'd stolen among everyone, and put the other half into the next heist.

Lance sighed beside Keith as they walked down the dark street.

After a moment Keith spoke. "What's with the long sigh?"

Lance tipped his head forward, gazing at the ground. "I'm gonna miss that sports car."

Keith laughed at that, a laughter that bubbled up without consent. Lance smiled down at him.

  
When they reached the apartment, Keith flopped down on the bed without hesitation. He breathed in deeply, his nose filling with Lance. And images of the night kept surfacing to the front of his mind- oh god, what now?

"Who says you're cuter than me?" Lance called from the kitchen, interrupting the silence. His voice sounded irritated, and Keith rolled his eyes.

"Vanessa, didn't you hear? And I think I believe her on that one."

Lance waved his arms through the air. "But I'm way better looking then you! And cuter. All around 100x better."

Keith raised an eyebrow, sitting up on the edge of the bed. "Are you now?"

"Yes." He answered, crossing his arms.

"Better than me at everything?"

"Everything."

"I don't know. I think I'm a little better at some things."

"Like what?" He asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.

A small grin spread over Keith's cheeks. "C'mere, I'll show you. It's a trick I learned when I was a teenager."

Lance hesitated slightly where he stood. He tentatively walked around the island to Keith, stopping in front of him and crossing his arms. "Okay, what?"

Without a word, Keith stood slowly, placing his hand in a feather light touch on the other boy's clothed chest, smoothing his hand up and over his shoulder. Lance stayed still, eyes a little wider than normal as he stared down at the shorter boy. Keith gave a small smirk at the silence and leaned in close, their breathes mingling together as his lips brushed passed the other's.

"I'm the only one who can shut you up for longer than 5 seconds." He said matter-of-factly, pulling away with a satisfied smile. Lance looked a little flustered, and he blinked rapidly, shaking his head to regain his sense of control. He gave a sly smirk at Keith.

"Oh no, you're not getting away that easily." He grabbed Keith back, locking their lips together. This kiss was very similar to their first one- if not, rougher- and Keith tried his best to contain the smile spreading over his cheeks. A tongue trailed over his lips, asking for entrance, and he granted it wholeheartedly, letting Lance slip his tongue inside and pushing Keith to the bed.

The first things to go were the suits- easily ripped off by Keith. Yes, Lance had looked hot as hell in that jacket, but there were more pressing matters to attend to that required its removal. He threw the two suits to the side just as Lance pulled back a little, breath ragged and already looking devilishly disheveled.

Lance licked his lips, his eyes slightly hooded as he looked into Keith's. He sat up, straddling him, and his tan hands slowly worked at the buttons on his shirt, undoing them one by one but his eyes never left Keith's, nor Keith his. And he had to admit, that was the sexiest thing he'd ever seen in his life, and God, he wanted nothing more that to lick and bite and Mark every inch of that beautiful golden skin.   
Lance's shirt was tossed to the side and a smirk played on his lips.

"What? Cat got your tongue?" He asked innocently. Then leaned down, close enough that his lips brushed Keith's ear. "Am I the cat?"

Keith swallowed thickly and gripped at Lance's waste, praying to the holy god because he was sinning, he was sinning so bad right now.

"God, Lance-" Keith started, but sucked in a sharp breath when he felt Lance's lips brush across his neck.

"Glad to know I'm being compared to a god," a dark chuckle escaped his lips and Keith could feel it reverberate through his body and right to his crotch. Lance must have taken notice at the situation, too, because the devil rocked his hips ever so slightly against Keith's and the boy damn near moaned.

"Fuck- this isn't fair." Keith snapped a little, but tilted his neck willingly as Lance explored more of it.

"What isn't fair?" Lance breathed against his throat. "I thought you were better than me at this, or were we talking about something else a few minutes ago?"

Keith growled at that, his grip tightening on Lance's waste and pulling him down, grinding their hips together quite intentionally. He watched with satisfaction as Lance faltered on his neck for a moment, his breathing shaking ever so slightly.

"You were saying?" Keith growled in his ear, nipping at it with another press of their hips together for emphasis. Lance breathed shakily, and in retaliation, nipped at his neck and sucked a large bruise into it. His tongue traveled up the length of Keith's neck, causing the other boy's head to fall back and mouth to open in a silent 'ah'.

"I think what's unfair is me being shirtless and you still fully clothed." Lance said when his lips reached his again, his fingers working at the buttons on Keith's shirt.

"Mhm." Was all Keith answered before their lips were locked again, chasing each other's taste. The shirt disappeared to the corner of the room and finally, finally the distance between them fully closed when Lance pressed his body flat against Keith's. Their hands greedily grabbed at each other, touching any expanse of open skin they could get to. They were becoming more ravenous, more desperate with each second, both looking for sweet relief, grinding against each other like a couple of hormonal high-schoolers.

Keith's hands eventually found the line of Lance's pants, and without second thought, flipped them over and began unbuckling the other's belt.

"Woah! Didn't see that coming.~" Lance purred up at him, and Keith rolled his eyes, unzipping the zipper and following it with a smirk.

"I'm eager, can you blame me?" He kissed at Lance's neck, making a silent promise to come back and mark it later. Then trailed kisses down his chest and stomach, stopping at navel and licking down to where he was slowly wiggling the taller man out of his pants, revealing dark blue shorts.

"Fuck, Keith..." Lance mumbled out, propped up in his elbows and watching with a flush on his cheeks. Keith smiled silently to himself, throwing the jeans away and working down the boxers.

Lance's erection sprang free, and Keith sucked in a sharp breath.   
He wasn't the biggest he'd ever seen, but it was fairly large. Keith leaned forward and opened his mouth, pressing his tongue flat against the tip as his eyes flicked up to meet Lance's. The boy had his hand around his mouth, taking deep breaths as their eyes met.

With a smirk, Keith wrapped his hand around Lance's dick, closing his mouth on the top and suckling. Lance's other hand came up to tangle in the other's black hair, tugging a little, and an involuntary moan escaped Keith's lips. A moan that made Lance's cock throb and a heavy breath of air escape his own lungs.

"Fuck," Lance breathed out again, as Keith licked a long stripe up his length, then did it again, and a third time before thank the heavens finally took Lance in his mouth again and pushed passed just the tip. His tongue worked feverishly on the underside of his cock and he sucked hard, his hand working the skin his mouth couldn't reach. That's fine, Keith thought, he'd get other opportunities, hopefully, to deep throat him.

"Ooh, mierda, shit-" Lance groaned out, both hands now gripping Keith's hair as he rutted up, fucking the other boy's mouth. Keith moaned around his length, his own hand gripping the tightness in his dress pants, desperate to relieve some of his own pressure.

Through the haze of pleasure, Lance noticed this, and took it upon himself to pull Keith off of him. He protested slightly, mouth hung open and a little trail of drool on the side of his chin. Lance gulped at the sight and took a moment to collect himself, before pulling Keith up to kiss him while his hands quickly removed the pants from the other man.

Keith kicked them aside and Lance barely waited for him to remove his boxers before his hand wrapped around both of their cocks, giving one long stroke, causing Keith to hunch over and shiver, and Lance himself to bite his lip and stifle a moan.

Keith's one hand rested on Lance's chest, and his other tangle through the man's hair, pulling him in for a passionate kiss. The taller sat up and Keith straddled him now, moaning into his mouth as Lance's hand stroked up and down both of their lengths.

"Ooh, Lance-" Keith moaned out, separating their mouths while his head tilted back slightly. Lance took this opportunity and attacked his throat, leaving bite marks and kisses and love marks on any skin he could get to. The pressure in Keith's stomach was building, building higher and higher and he rutted into the feeling of that strong hand stroking them both. Both his hands found and nested in brown hair, pulling on it. The noise that came out of Lance was positively sinful.

"Fuck- Keith, I'm close..." He forced out of his mouth, breathing heavily against pale skin. Keith bit his lip, because oh, that set him off.

He came in spurts, groaning into brown hair and arching his back, pressing into the other man, and probably smearing his mess all over both of them in the process. Lance was not far behind, coming in between them and making an even bigger mess, something that Keith found amusing for some reason in his state of euphoria.

They slumped against eachother, out of breath with jelly limbs and tired eyes. A small chuckle came out of Lance's lips, his voice husky, and Keith thought: _damn._

"We didn't even have sex. What the hell. This is gross." He mumbled, peeling them apart and looking down at their stomach. "Wanna clean up?"

Keith didn't feel he had enough energy to talk, so he just nodded numbly. The helped each other off the bed and climbed into the shower together- needless to say, well, they had a quick round two before they were finished cleaning up.


End file.
